Radcliffe has no planned date for her competitive comeback

Paula Radcliffe has raised the prospect of competing at the highest level and breaking records into her 40s.

The 36-year-old, expecting her second child in September, says that becoming pregnant again will not derail her bid for Olympic gold on home soil in 2012.

And she added: "As soon as 2012 is finished then that's not me finished. I want to keep going hopefully.

"There is probably a finite number of top-class marathons an athlete can run, but it's different for each person."

Radcliffe was forced out of the Athens Olympic marathon in 2004 because of dehydration, before the after-effects of a stress fracture of the femur prevented her from challenging for a medal in Beijing four years later.

The world record holder in the marathon has been besieged by injury problems over the last 12 months.

She had an operation on her foot to remove a bunion last March before a knee problem caused her to finish a disappointing fourth in her bid to win the New York Marathon for a fourth time.

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Radcliffe is more determined than ever to realise her full potential and win gold in 2012.

"I have not had the chance to go out there and do myself justice in an Olympic marathon yet," said Radcliffe.

"Hopefully all this rest will help me have that chance now.

"I have a massive desire to win gold in 2012. The fact that it is in London on home soil makes you want to go out and perform well.

"There is also a huge motivation because of what happened to me in Athens and Beijing.

"I want that chance to stand on the line, having had perfect preparations, to go out there and just do what I enjoy doing best, which is competing when fully fit and in shape."

Radcliffe refused to name a date for her return to competitive action, with the London Marathon of 2011 not necessarily on the agenda.

"I have all of 2011 to work towards getting my qualifying marathon done," she added.

"And since surgery, my foot is doing well so I can get back into spikes and hopefully not lurch from injury to injury, which is what was happening to me before."

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